On this date 20 years ago, the very first issue of Simpsons Comics was released, Bongo Comics Group’s first comic.

But it wasn’t the first Simpsons Comic… Simpsons Illustrated #1, first on sale April 4, 1991, was. Well, technically it wasn’t a Simpsons comic, it was a magazine. The very first Simpsons COMIC was Simpsons Comics and Stories 1 from January 1993, nearly eleven months before Simpsons Comics 1 was released. (Oh, and by the way, Illustrated #1 and Comics and Stories #1 were published by Welsh Publishing, not Bongo. If Bongo DID publish them, then this would only be the 20th anniversary of Simpsons Comics).

Simpsons Illustrated #1

Simpsons Comics and Stories #1

HAPPY 20TH ANNIVERSARY SIMPSONS COMICS, AND BONGO! The blog wishes you another happy year of publishing in 2014.

This site has been online for one and a half years now but it has not remained a head figure in the UK comic world, well, it never really was one, to the end. To all you still following the site, it is with great sadness that I am closing the site. The site will still remain online, but it will no longer be updated. The reason why I am closing this site is because things have been rather busy my end, and I cannot find time to review the comics. I am setting up a new blog, called Phinbart’s Rants (working title!) where I hope most of my followers will follow me too. I may post comic-related news there, and perhaps in the future, this site may come alive again.

Today, Simpsons Comics #203 was made available in your local comic book store, or wherever you buy your comics the second they come out.

Looks like Homer almost ran the comic into a lawsuit. Good job, blue-haired lawyer. And change your hair, that’s the only interesting thing about you…plus, there’s already another Springfieldian that draws attention because of her hair.

This time, Bart creates (another) successful humor magazine for his class. Krusty the Clown co-opts the idea, and turns it into a satirical monthly serial of his own (I know you’re probably saying, “Krusty, how could you?”, but there’s more) – and he hired Bart as the head writer. (“Sorry, Krusty, but it did seem like you were stealing the idea for a magazine Bart created, like what happened in a comic two decades ago”) But Bart didn’t have Homer in mind for the perfect cover spokesman for the mag- now called D’oh! Magazine D’oh!

And there’s more Simpsons Comics now available on the official app. Last issue (saves you trailing to the store and buying a copy, not a very good choice of comic, Comixology…) and Radioactive Man #7 are now available.

And if you’re wondering why I’m taking a more humourous side to things, rather than just cut-n-pasting the comic info from BongoComics.com to here, it’s because of the new, slick, WordPress design.

Today in the UK, Simpsons Comics #212 was released! The issue comes with a free squirter torch. Woo-hoo(!)

This issue, Homer accidentally spills beer on the Springfield Internet Hub, and in result, the internet goes down. As a consequence, the Simpson family have to provide the town’s internet needs, in The Dot Com Before the Storm Also, Itchy and Scratchy are working at a gas station and fight over a girl, in Kill-er-up with Regular

There’s also a competition this issue! Titan would like readers to come up with a crazy or silly invention idea, much like what Professor Frink does. The best ideas will be printed and their favourite will win a cool prize. To send in your inventions, go to simpsonsmail@titanemail.com with the subject header ‘Frink-ventions’ and a picture attached, or send them to ‘Frink-ventions’, Simpsons Comics, Titan Comics, 144 Southwark Street, London SE1 OUP!

On the 4th of July, Lisa gets to compete in an awesome ‘Mathletes’ quiz….but the school can;t afford to get her there. Because of this, we get to see a side of Lisa we’ve never seen before…anyone else up for some rebelling? Meanwhile, Bart causes a Squishee explosion at the Kwik-E-Mart! Don’t confuse him for a stuffed toy! That’s all in Simpsons Comics #213, on sale July 4th. And make sure you don’t miss meeting Teenage Homer in next week’s new Best of the Simpsons #71 – oh, and watch out for some exclusive Simpsons comic strips – only ever seen in newspapers a decade ago!

That’s it for now! Smell ya later.

P.S. Don’t just buy Simpsons Comics for the free gift. Most of the time they’re rubbish.

Apologies to all our blog readers for not being able to keep the blog up to date.

Things have been a bit busy at home lately, which is way I hadn’t reported on the latest issues being available. Also, for UK readers, I haven’t been able to post a “Let’s Take a Look at…” post because of this; one should be on its way soon.

In this issue of Summer Shinding, there’s a summer bonanza of sizzling hot Simpsons stories! First, Bart and Milhouse battle it out to see who will become the Springfield Isotopes’ new batboy. Next, Mr. Burns commandeers the Springfield public beach in the middle of a heatwave and stands between the citizens of Springfield and the surf. And when the Simpson family takes a summer vacation on the Silver Flash express train, they don’t seem to be going anywhere in a flash and they are expressly miserable. Last but not least, when Bart and Milhouse are lost, Homer seeks the help of the only rule of law in the backwoods of Springfield, Judge Dredd-neck…okay, it’s Cletus.